A well maintained HVAC system that is running at its peak efficiency can save you a tremendous amount on your heating and cooling bills. If you are unsure as to how your AC system stacks up or if It’s been over a year since your home air conditioning system has been serviced, consider contacting us to schedule an AC Tune-Up or, if your system is over 10 years old, it might be time for a full system refurbishing or possibly even a replacement.

In the meantime, there are some things that you can do yourself to make sure that you’re getting the most out of your energy dollar. By performing the Do-it-Yourself energy audit from the U.S. Department of Energy (see below), you can identify and correct problem areas in your home that may be resulting in unnecessarily high heating and cooling bills.

Save Money on Your Energy Bills with an HVAC Home Energy Audit

A well maintained HVAC system that is running at its peak efficiency can save you a tremendous amount on your heating and cooling bills. If you are unsure as to how your AC system stacks up or if It’s been over a year since your home air conditioning system has been serviced, consider contacting us to schedule an AC Tune-Up or, if your system is over 10 years old, it might be time for a full system refurbishing or possibly even a replacement.

In the meantime, there are some things that you can do yourself to make sure that you’re getting the most out of your energy dollar. By performing the Do-it-Yourself energy audit from the U.S. Department of Energy (see below), you can identify and correct problem areas in your home that may be resulting in unnecessarily high heating and cooling bills.

A well maintained HVAC system that is running at its peak efficiency can save you a tremendous amount on your heating and cooling bills. If you are unsure as to how your AC system stacks up or if It’s been over a year since your home air conditioning system has been serviced, consider contacting us to schedule an AC Tune-Up or, if your system is over 10 years old, it might be time for a full system refurbishing or possibly even a replacement.

In the meantime, there are some things that you can do yourself to make sure that you’re getting the most out of your energy dollar. By performing the Do-it-Yourself energy audit from the U.S. Department of Energy (see below), you can identify and correct problem areas in your home that may be resulting in unnecessarily high heating and cooling bills.

“Today’s best air conditioners use 30% to 50% less energy to produce the same amount of cooling as air conditioners made in the mid 1970s. Even if your air conditioner is only 10 years old, you may save 20% to 40% of your cooling energy costs by replacing it with a newer, more efficient model.”

PART 1: LOCATING AIR LEAKS

In addition to making you home more comfortable, you could save anywhere from 5%-30% off of your heating and cooling bills by simply reducing the number of air leaks in your home

Check the seals around all windows and doors. If you can see daylight around them, air can get through. Also check that windows and doors are tightly fitted in their frames. If you can rattle them, then air can get through there as well. Seal any leaks or gaps that you find by re-caulking or by replacing the weather stripping.

First, check for any obvious leaks around:

Windows

Window frames

Doors (weather stripping)

Baseboards

Fireplace dampers

Attic Hatches or Attic Doors

Wall- or Window-Mounted AC units

Also check for leaks around:

Pipes and Wires

Foundation Seals

Mail Slots

Electrical Outlets

Switch plates

For harder to find leaks, it can help to perform a basic building pressurization test.

Close all openings to the outside – windows, doors, fireplace flues, etc.

Turn ON all exhaust fans (usually located in the kitchen and bathroom – NOTE: Not all kitchen exhausts vent to the outside. If yours doesn’t, or if you’re not sure, don’t turn it on). Alternately, you can use a large window fan (window opened and fan pointing outside) to suck air out of the rooms.

The above steps will draw air from outside of your home through the leak sources. To identify any leaks dampen your hand with water and place it where you suspect there may be leaks. Any drafts will feel cool on your hand. You can also use a burning incense stick to locate leaks. Light the incense and place it near the suspected leak. If a leak is present the smoke will waiver. Make sure to check all of the likely sources of leaks listed above.

Inspect the exterior of your home for holes or cracks, especially in areas where two different materials meet, such as:

All exterior corners

Areas where siding and chimneys meet

Areas where different types of siding meet

The boundary between siding or exterior brick and the home’s foundation

Holes or penetrations from faucets, electrical outlets, wiring or pipes

Caulk or seal any holes or cracks that you find

When sealing your home, be aware of the potential hazards of indoor air pollution and combustion appliance (furnaces, stoves, etc.) “backdrafts.” Backdrafts occur when various combustion appliance’s exhaust fans compete for air causing combustion gasses to be pulled back into the living space creating a hazardous environment in the home. Never seal off any exhaust vent openings. If you are uncertain if your appliances have adequate ventilation to operate safely, contact us to schedule an inspection.

PART 2: INSULATION

Insulation slows the transfer of heat between the interior of your home and the outside environment keeping heat out in the summer and in in the winter. Heat transfer through your walls and ceiling can have a tremendous impact on your utility bills. To keep your heating and cooling costs as low as possible, it is important that your home is adequately and properly insulated. Over time your insulation can compact and redistribute making it less effective. Also, if you have an older home, built when energy was relatively cheap, chances are the recommended insulation levels were considerably lower than what is recommended today

The first place to check for proper insulation is the attic. Check and, where possible correct, the following:

Insulation depth and distribution

Check for areas where the insulation has shifted leaving bare spots or has compacted. Redistribute if needed. The amount of recommended insulation varies from area to area. If you have an older home, you may want to contact an insulation professional to advise you if your home is adequately insulated. If it’s not, the cost of adding new insulation will be offset by your energy savings.

Attic Hatch

Check to see if the attic hatch is weather stripped and closes tightly. Also, check that it is at least as heavily insulated as the rest of the attic.

Vapor Barrier

vapor barriers reduce the amount of water vapor that can pass through ceilings or walls. Water vapor can lower the efficiency of insulation and can contribute to structural damage in your home. The vapor barrier might be tar paper, plastic sheeting, or a brown kraft paper attached to fiberglass batting. If you don’t see a vapor barrier, consider paint the interior walls and ceiling of your home with a vapor barrier paint.

Duct work

Inspect your duct work for separated or split seams. With you AC blower on, you shouldn’t be able to feel any air flow coming from your ducts. Also look for dirt streaks, especially at the seams, as these can also indicate leaks. Small leaks can be sealed with duct tape. If you find many leaks or you have an older home, consider having your ductwork replaced or repaired by a professional.

Attic Vents

Make sure that attic vents are not blocked by insulation.

Electrical Boxes

seal any electrical boxes in the ceiling with a flexible caulk (can be done on the attic side or the living area side.)

Next, you’ll want to check your exterior walls for insulation. This can be considerably more difficult from lack of easy access but you do have a couple of options.

Option 1

Locate a rarely visible discrete area on an external wall, such as inside a closet or behind a sofa or other piece of furniture, and cut a small hole in the sheetrock to allow you to see what, if anything, the wall is filled with. If it’s in a closet you could even cut a hole near the ceiling and near the floor to determine if the entire wall is insulated.

Option 2

Contact an insulation specialist and arrange to have a thermographic done to your walls. While this option probably not DIY, it’s really the only definitive way to determine the extent of your exterior wall insulation without removing all of the sheetrock.

PART 3: HEATING & COOLING EQUIPMENT

Filters

check your filters periodically and change a minimum or every 1 or 2 months or the when they get dirty. Make sure that the filters you choose don’t inhibit the air flow through your system. Restricted air flow is one of the primary reason that air conditioning systems don’t cool properly. If you are using a filter with a very high MERV (Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value) rating, be aware that it will, as intended, capture more dust particles and as a result will clog much more quickly. You should monitor your high MERV filters very closely and change them when they are dirty or if your AC doesn’t seem to be cooling as well as usual.

Preventative Maintenance

Regular maintenance on your HVAC system is extremely important. Not only to keep it running smoothly but also to keep it running as efficiently as possible so that it consumes a little energy as possible. Most AC system manufacturers recommend that you have you home AC serviced at least once a year. We recommend having Basic System Check done twice yearly, once before summer begins to heat up and once before winter begins to cool things back down. In areas like Houston, with extreme difference in climate from summer to winter, twice yearly check-ups allow us to focus on the upcoming season.

Finally, if your system is over 15 years old, you should consider replacing it with a new higher efficiency model. As mentioned at the beginning of this article, even replacing a 10 year old system with a new one could save you 20-40% on your energy costs. If you’re not ready to spring for a whole new system, consider having your AC system refurbished. We’ll thoroughly inspect and test all system components, clean the coils and air-flow parts, lubricate the motors, check all electrical wiring an tighten all connections, replace the run capacitors and the contactor, clean and calibrate the thermostat and much more.